Jovi Skyler creates punk and alternative rock with an early ’90s spirit and a twist of psychedelia, delivering music that is driven, passionate, and packs a powerful punch. With Hysteria quoting him as “Uncompromisingly angsty and electrifying”, we’re welcomed to his latest project, “Call It A Day”, a four-track EP. Keep reading for my thoughts!
Adopting a true classic 90s grunge sound on “Call It A Day” that makes one reminisce of artists like Nirvana and Blur, the EP opens with the so grunge named “A**hole” — while Jovi finds his punk rocker, screaming the expletive in the choruses to impressive effect, while the guitars and the drums keep up express pace. His saturated vocals, and tasteful inclusion of clean passages to serve as the aperitif before the swigs of bourbon that are the choruses, he nails the energy balance on this one.
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Segueing to the second track, “Lil Bo Weep”, Jovi takes on a bit of a more roller rock posture in this one, with its punk drumming that easily takes the spotlight on this song right from the start to the very end. Jovi’s voice, when it kicks in, takes control of the mix quite nicely, sitting nicely atop the creamy, overdriven guitars and the infectious riffs they bring, making for an overall great sophomore track on “Call It A Day”.
As we move to the third track, “Frankenstein”, “Call It A Day” takes on a bit more soft an avatar, this time bringing acoustic guitars to the mix, while Jovi dials down the energy in the intro a little, almost as if to prepare us for the explosion of energy in the choruses — but alas! Anticlimactically, almost, Jovi manages to keep his horses in check, sticking to the softer themes of the track. A welcome addition, if you’d ask me.
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As we bring the EP to a close with “Rumble”, the themes of the album find themselves quite nicely wrapped up with a mid-tempo classic rock straight-four affair with animate, skilled guitars, and the return of the tasteful clean passages return, to give this album the ending that it was made for.
The production is varied, it’s raw and distinctive, and retains power throughout — be it the lead passages, or the clean sung passages that dot this album in crucial places. The Is are dotted, the Ts are struck, and overall, there’s a good bit of polishing to elevate the album even further.
All in all, “Call It A Day”, by Jovi Skyler – the album title notwithstanding, Jovi’s barely about to call it a day with this one — and we’re excited to see what the future does hold for his music. Take a listen to the album here!
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